Clerk, Treasurer races tighten; 70,000 ballots left to count in the county; next update Friday the 13th

By Allen Payton

In the Friday afternoon Semi-Official Results – Update #1 from the Contra Costa Elections Division, newcomer and challenger Tamisha Walker has overtaken first-term Councilwoman Joy Motts in the District 1 race for Antioch City Council. The latest count shows Walker with 2,247 votes to 2,235 for Motts. Former Antioch Mayor Pro Tem and current Planning Commissioner Manny Soliz, Jr. is in a close third place with 1,946 votes.

The previous update on Tuesday night at 11:44 p.m. had Motts in the lead by 50 votes with 1,563 votes to Walker’s 1,513.

In the City Clerk’s and Treasurer’s races the gaps between the incumbents and their challengers narrowed. Incumbent City Clerk Arne Simonsen saw his lead decrease from 526 votes to 398 on Friday, over Antioch School Board Trustee Ellie Householder. Dwayne Eubanks is still in a distant third at 6,291 votes behind Householder.

Householder congratulated Simonsen in a Facebook post on Wednesday afternoon in effect, conceding the race. However, in light of the latest results she was asked Friday evening if she is now thinking of reconsidering and hoping for a victory but. Householder responded, “Because of the way the numbers were trending on Tuesday, I am not expecting a win. While the new numbers look promising, with the number of remaining outstanding votes, I don’t see a path to victory. I will say, I am delighted at the overall voter turnout!”

Appointed incumbent City Treasurer Jim Davis saw his lead decrease from 1,075 votes on Tuesday night to 764 votes over newcomer and challenger Lauren Posada.

In the race for Mayor of Antioch, Councilman Lamar Thorpe increased his lead over incumbent Mayor Sean Wright by 3,489 votes expanding his lead by 1,241 votes since Tuesday night. Thorpe now has 16,169 votes to Wright’s 12,680. Julio Jesse Mendez, Gabriel Makinano and Rakesh Kumar Christian trail in distant third, fourth and fifth places with 3,484 votes, 2,941 votes and 1,220 votes, respectively. Thorpe currently has five more votes than Wright and Mendez combined.

In the District 2 Council race, Mike Barbanica’s lead over former Councilman Tony Tiscareno increased by 111 votes since Election Night, now with 4,528 to 3,856 votes.

In District 3, incumbent Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock increased her lead over newcomer and homeless advocate Nichole Gardner by 75 votes, with 3,842 to 3,177 votes. Parks & Recreation Commission Chair Marie Arce trails in third place by 1,069 votes with 2,108 followed by Administrative Appeals Board Member Antwon Webster with 1,700 votes.

In the District 4 race, two-term incumbent Councilwoman Monica Wilson still has almost double the votes her main challenger and Police Crime Prevention Commission Chair Sandra White has, at 5,408 votes to 2,723 expanding her lead by 698 votes since Tuesday night. Newcomer and zero-dollar campaign candidate Alex John Astorga, is in third place with 1,672 votes.

In the Antioch School Board races in Area 1, newcomer Antonio Hernandez expanded his lead over incumbent Board President Diane Gibson-Gray by 192 votes to 432, with a total of 2,279 to her 1,847 votes. Alexis Medina who dropped out of the race and gave her support to Hernandez is in third place with 1,100 votes trailed by the third newcomer and challenger George Young who is in fourth place with 818 votes.

Finally, in the Area 3 school board race, Dr. Clyde Lewis, Jr. also expanded his lead by 353 votes now leading incumbent Trustee Crystal-Sawyer White by 1,128 votes in his second try for the position. He now has 3,569 votes to her 2,441. In third place is Kenny Turnage with 1,621 votes.

Asked if she was ready to concede and congratulate Lewis now that his lead has increased, Sawyer-White did not respond before publication time.

Please check back later to her and Householder’s responses and any other updates to this report.

According to county Elections office staff there are about 70,000 ballots left to count in the county, including 65,000 vote-by-mail ballots and 5,000 provisionals. The next results update won’t occur until next Friday, November 13 at 5:00 p.m. You read that correctly – Friday the 13th!

Queue the song “I Can’t Drive 55” or 35

By Antioch Police Department

There’s no such thing as a “routine” traffic stop…

Thursday, at around 10:20 am, Officer Erickson was doing speed enforcement on East 18th Street near Biglow Drive. He clocked a Mercedes going 67 MPH in a 35 MPH zone and decided to flip on the red and blues to have a conversation with the driver about why he was driving like he was on a freeway. He soon learned the driver was on parole, which is a type of offender supervision where one receives early release from jail or prison but, agrees to be searched by law enforcement for any reason. Individuals on parole can have their person, vehicle, residence and anything under their control searched without a warrant.

Officer Erickson searched the vehicle and located an unregistered pistol under the driver’s seat, which the driver was not allowed to have because of his prior convictions (and his parole status). Said driver was fitted with a set of chrome bracelets and brought to the County Jail, so he could tell others why they should obey the speed limit in Antioch (and not drive around with unlawfully possessed firearms!).

Our violent crime rate is down 39% since 2012 and -10% since last year. One way we accomplish this is by conducting proactive enforcement, along with probation and parole compliance checks. If you have information on a crime occurring in our city, you can call our Dispatch at (925) 778-2441 or send an anonymous text-tip to 274637 with the keyword ANTIOCH. Thanks for helping us keep Antioch safe! #antiochpdca

By Sergeant James Stenger #3604, Antioch Police Violent Crimes Unit (Investigations Bureau)

On Thursday, November 5, 2020, at about 4:06 pm, Antioch Police patrol officers were notified of a shooting that occurred in front of 9 W. 20th Street. A 40-year-old male was located suffering from a single gunshot wound to his torso. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was declared deceased.

The Antioch Police Department Investigations Bureau responded and took over the investigation of this case. It was determined the victim and a 32-year-old male suspect were involved in a physical fight. After the fight was over, the suspect produced a handgun and shot the victim one time. The suspect was located at a residence on Poplar Drive in Concord and he was taken into custody for this homicide. This was an isolated incident and the suspect and victim were known to each other.

Additional inquiries or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Bledsoe at (925) 779-6884 or by emailing lbledsoe@antiochca.gov. Anonymous tips or information about this – or any other incident – can be sent via text to 274637 (CRIMES) with the keyword ANTIOCH.

Sandoval beating Enholm in college board Ward 5 seat; incumbent Gordon trailing former community college president Walters in Ward 2 seat;

Avila Farias leading incumbent in county Board of Education Area 3 race; incumbent Alleynne won’t claim victory yet in close race for Area 1

By Daniel Borsuk

Five-term Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors member Federal Glover won a sixth term of office on Tuesday, trouncing Contra Costa County Assessor Gus Kramer by almost two-to-one with 34,649 votes to 17,861 votes for Kramer, according to the latest update from the Contra Costa Elections Division.

Glover told the Herald: “I want to thank the people for this opportunity to serve. I have to recognize the hard work that the people on the ground put into my campaign.  I want to thank the people for their support for me over the years.”

Glover said he will work to provide the resources to “keep people safe from COVID-19.”

Over the upcoming four years Glover, a retired Dow Chemical worker who had served five years on the Pittsburg city council before starting his Board of Supervisors career, said he envisions the rollout of the Northern Waterfront Plan that will help ignite economic development along the county’s waterfront from Pinole to Oakley.

The supervisor said the recent announcement that Amazon will operate a 150,000 square foot operation at the Contra Costa Logistics Center in Oakley is a prime example of what the waterfront plan aims to create.  The Amazon Fulfillment Center will create more than 2,000 jobs.

Kramer, who is currently involved in a Superior Court case for “willful or corrupt misconduct for making unwelcome sexual comments to people in his office” told the Contra Costa Herald about his election defeat. “I wish Federal well.  I thought that the citizens of Contra Costa County deserved a choice and that I made that choice for them.”

The runoff election pitting Glover and Kramer was called when neither candidate mustered more than 50 percent of the vote in the March election when a third candidate, Martinez businessman and Planning Commissioner Sean Trambley also ran splitting the vote.

Sandoval Beating Enholm for Community College Board Seat Ward 5

In another election race, Fernando Sandoval in his second attempt is defeating two-term Contra Costa Community College District Board Ward 5 Commissioner Greg Enholm drawing 26,836 of the votes to 22,279 votes for Enholm.  Ward 5 includes Pittsburg, Oakley, and portions of Antioch, Brentwood, Byron, and Discovery Bay.

Sandoval, who campaigned for educational excellence and fiscal accountability, defeated the retired college professor Enholm. Sandoval said in a statement, “I’d like to acknowledge Greg Enholm for his service to the District.  I am grateful to all the voters and my supporters for helping me to achieve this victory!  I am excited to turn my policy platform of education equity, fiscal transparency, expansion of innovative online learning approaches and strengthening private/public partnerships into action. I plan to hold myself accountable to further these goals and to bring ‘Community’ back into the Community College District.  Our students, faculty, staff and residents deserve this type of leadership and I look forward to working with my fellow trustees to take our district to the next level of excellence.”

An enthusiastic Sandoval told the Herald he was happy with the results and thinks the gap in votes will be too much for Enholm to overtake him.

UPDATE: When reached for comment Enholm responded, “It is very clear to me that voters are expressing their frustration and even anger about colleges and schools not having in-person classes for students. Both College Board incumbents, both County Board of Education incumbents, and many school district (K-5, K-12, and high school) incumbents could lose when the final vote totals are released. None of us incumbents caused the pandemic and we all made difficult decisions to assure safety of our students, staffs, and visitors by minimizing the risk of illness or death from the coronavirus. The voters have the right to remove incumbents from office for any reasons they choose.”

Walters Beating Gordon for College Board Ward 2 Seat

Career community college professional Judy Walters of Martinez, won the Ward 5 seat to the Contra Costa Community College District, with 37,776 votes or 49.6 percent of the total votes cast for the seat held by incumbent Vicki Gordon of Martinez who has been on the College Board since 2012. She garnered 28,095 votes or 36.9%, so far.  John Michaelson also ran, collecting 10,270 votes for third place.

UPDATE: When reached for comment Walters responded Thursday night Nov. 5, “I am honored by the trust voters have placed in me to be their representative on the Contra Costa Community College Board.  As promised, I will lead with integrity and use my experience to ensure the educational excellence of our colleges while keeping student success at the core of my decision-making.”

Ward 2 encompasses Lafayette, Orinda, Walnut Creek, Martinez, Rodeo, Crockett, and parts of Alamo and Pleasant Hill.

County Board of Education Area 1 Race Too Close to Call

In the tight race for the Contra Costa County Board of Education Area 1 seat, incumbent Dr. Fatima Alleynne, had a narrow lead over challenger retired West Contra Costa Unified School District teacher Consuelo Lara, collecting 26,024 votes versus 25,586. “I do not feel comfortable claiming victory, as of yet,” she wrote in an email sent to the Herald. “Given the number of uncounted votes and how close the race is…I would prefer to wait for the process to conclude.”

The CCC Board of Education Area 1 includes Richmond, El Cerrito, Pinole, Crockett, and Hercules.

Farias Leading Incumbent Chavez for County Board of Education Area 3 Seat

In another County Board of Education race, AnaMarie Avila Farias was leading with 30,257 votes or 52.9 percent of the votes over incumbent Vicki Chavez with 26,871 votes for the Area 3 seat.  The Area 3 trustee represents Pacheco and parts of Clayton, Concord, Martinez, Pittsburg, Pleasant Hill, and Walnut Creek. The former Martinez councilwoman, Farias had previously run unsuccessfully for Supervisor against Federal Glover in 2016.

Next Election Results Update Friday at 5:00 PM

The Contra Costa Elections Division is continuing to count the ballots that arrived by yesterday and will continue to arrive for as long as 17 more days including today. They have 28 days to finish the count and certify the election. So, final results may be as much as four weeks away. The next update of results is expected this Friday at 5:00 p.m.

 

By Brentwood Police Department

It was the call that every officer dreads to hear…

On September 20, 2020, at around 2:54 AM, Brentwood officers responded to a residence in the 50 block of Havenwood Ave. to investigate a report of an unresponsive 2 year-old child, later identified as Jasani Kerry. His mother, 22-year-old Genesis Barrera-Galdamez, had found him unresponsive and telephoned emergency personnel.

When officers and emergency personnel arrived on scene, they performed CPR for several minutes, however, Jasani was ultimately declared deceased. The preliminary investigation revealed drug paraphernalia and illicit drugs that later tested positive for fentanyl in the presence of Jasani preceding his death. Weeks later, a Contra Costa County Coroner’s pathologist determined Jasani’s cause of death was due to acute fentanyl intoxication.

Following an extensive follow-up investigation, Brentwood investigators prepared an arrest warrant for Genesis charging her with murder.

On October 30, 2020 at around 3:30 PM, investigators located Genesis at the Comfort Inn Hotel located at 2436 Mahogany Way in Antioch and took her into custody without incident. Genesis was booked at the Martinez Detention Facility on the outstanding arrest warrant.

Yesterday the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office formally charged Genesis with second-degree murder, possession of narcotics for sale, and child abuse resulting in death. Genesis is being held on $1.1 million dollar bail.

Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends who have been affected by this tragedy. The loss of any child is difficult for anyone to bear; we hope the arrest in this case can bring some peace to those affected.

Rest in peace Jasani.

Arraignment Scheduled For November 18

Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office Public Information Officer Scott Alonso issued the following about the case Thursday morning:

Earlier this week, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office filed murder charges against Genesis Barrera-Galdamez (22-year-old resident of Brentwood) for the death of her two-year-old son, Jasani Kerry, Jr. Barrera-Galdamez was also charged with felony child abuse and felony possession of Fentanyl to sell. Two enhancements were also filed tied to the child abuse charge against the defendant: willful harm causing injury and great bodily injury resulting in brain damage and paralysis. The young child consumed fentanyl under the care of Barrera-Galdamez. The child’s autopsy report later ruled the toddler’s death was caused by Acute Fentanyl Toxicity.

Brentwood Police Department investigated the case and presented it to our Office for filing. Homicide Unit Supervisor Derek Butts reviewed the investigation and filed the charges listed above.

“While the Defendant did not intend that her son Jasani die, the evidence shows that she was aware her Fentanyl possession and use was dangerous to human life and despite this knowledge, exposed Jasani to the danger which ultimately led to his death, stated Deputy District Attorney Butts. “Well known amongst abusers, Fentanyl is an exceptionally toxic and dangerous substance.  The act of exposing people to or supplying others with Fentanyl, if death results, can lead to murder charges.”

In the early morning hours of September 20, the defendant called police and stated her son was not breathing and non-responsive. She told the police that her son appeared blue and his body was very cold. CPR performed at the scene by Brentwood Police Officers and continued by American Medical Response personnel for over 30 minutes did not revive the boy. Officers at the scene located multiple items of drug paraphernalia on and around the bed the Defendant shared with Jasani, including 13 grams of powdered Fentanyl, baggies and tin foil pieces containing Fentanyl residue and a torch lighter.

After Jasani’s death, Barrera-Galdamez attempted to sell Fentanyl to multiple parties. Brentwood Police Department officers obtained a warrant for the arrest of the defendant on October 29th. The following day, Barrera-Galdamez was arrested at the Comfort Inn in Antioch, where she was engaging in Fentanyl sales.

Barrera-Galdamez made her first appearance in court yesterday and she remains in custody with bail set at $1,100,000. Her arraignment on the charges was set for November 18th.

Case information: People v. Genesis Barrera-Galdamez, Docket Number 04-200626-0.

 

With data from the past week showing a marked increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Contra Costa County, health officials are taking steps to protect the community with modest changes to local health orders.

Contra Costa entered the orange tier of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy on Oct. 27, triggering an expansion of community reopening activities in the county. But since that date, the average daily number of new cases in the county has grown substantially higher.

If the trend continues, the county is at risk of moving backward into the more-restrictive red tier of the state’s reopening plan as soon as next week. In the meantime, Contra Costa has amended its health orders to rein in some of the riskier indoor activities permitted under the orange tier in hopes of preventing outbreaks and keeping the county out of the red.

Contra Costa County’s health officer issued new orders today limiting the number of spectators allowed at professional and collegiate sporting events, while also reimposing restrictions on other high-risk activities.

The health order on sporting events limits the number of spectators at pro or college games to 25 people from no more than three different households. This is consistent with the County’s guidance on private social gatherings, said Dr. Chris Farnitano, the County’s health officer.

The health officer also issued another order restoring stricter limitations on high-risk activities, such as prolonged indoor gatherings and gatherings involving eating and drinking where masks must be removed. Wearing face coverings when around others from outside your household is one of the most effective ways people can stop the spread of COVID, Dr. Farnitano said.

Under the new order, select high-risk activities must be modified:

• Outdoor bars prohibited (except where allowed under restaurant guidance with drinks as part of a meal)
• Indoor dining allowed at a maximum of 25% occupancy or 100 people, whichever is fewer (down from 50% occupancy and 200 people)
• Indoor movie theaters can operate at a maximum 25% of occupancy or 100 people, whichever is fewer (down from 50% occupancy or 200 people)
• Religious services indoors allowed at a maximum 25% occupancy or 100 people, whichever is fewer (down from 50% occupancy or 200 people)
• Cardrooms and satellite wagering sites can’t operate indoors (they previously could operate indoors at 25% capacity)

“We believe these measures are necessary to reduce the spread of COVID in our community,” Dr. Farnitano said.

The state allows counties to impose stricter standards so local health departments can respond to circumstances in their communities. The order in Contra Costa will go into effect Friday, Nov. 6. Over the past months, the Bay Area counties have made the decisions they’ve felt best around opening or not opening businesses and activities. San Francisco pulled back on their timeline for opening last week. Alameda and Santa Clara have all taken a slower pace than the state tier system allows. All three of these counties are essentially operating at red tier level restrictions even though they are in orange or yellow tiers.

Contra Costa County is still in the orange tier, but case rates are increasing again into the more restrictive red-tier level. The most recent data show an adjusted rate of 4.9 daily cases per 100,000 people in Contra Costa – above the orange-tier benchmark of fewer than 4 per 100,000 people.

If those numbers hold for another week or increase, Contra Costa will move back into the more restrictive red tier.

In addition, there were 40 people hospitalized on Nov. 2 due to COVID in local hospitals, compared to a low point of 17 in mid-October.

For now, other activities not cited in the new order will still be allowed under orange-tier criteria, including indoor swimming pools and indoor family entertainment centers can continue “naturally distanced” activities, such as bowling alleys, escape rooms and climbing-wall gyms, at 25% occupancy.

For more information, visit cchealth.org/coronavirus.

 

By Allen Payton

In the race for Antioch School Board in Areas 1 and 3, both incumbents, Board President Diane Gibson-Gray seeking her third term, and Trustee Crystal Sawyer-White seeking her second, were trailing their first-place challengers. Newcomer Antonio Hernandez is in the lead in Area 1 by 240 voted with 1,579 votes to Gibson-Gray’s 1,339 and in Area 3 Lewis is ahead of Sawyer-White by 775 votes, as of the 11:44 p.m. Election Night update from the Contra Costa Elections office.

In a distant third place in Area 1 is Alexis Medina who dropped out of the race, but so far has 755 votes followed by another newcomer George Young with 548. In Area 3 former Antioch Planning Commission Chair Kenny Turnage is in third place with 1,167 votes trailing Sawyer-White by 657 votes.

Lewis posted on his Facebook Wednesday morning, “I was humbled to learn (this morning) that I had in fact won my race for Antioch School Board District 3, as last night I intentionally turned off all media and headed to bed by 8 30pm. Wow I’m still in shock.

I would like to begin today by thanking my family, friends, neighbors and community members for your wonderful support through this race. You are all awesome! This race was by no means a walk in the park.

It is said that a person is judged by their competition and both of you worked hard during this campaign and in that spirit, I would like to thank Ken Turnage II and Crystal White for a mostly clean race. I’m looking forward to working with everyone to bring the changes needed to support our kiddos, our schools and our community.

Now that the race is over and many on the campaign ran on creating unity, let’s keep that spirit and bring the supports needed to push #Antioch to where it needs to be.

Again, thank you for your support…now the work begins…

#TrusteeDrClydeLewis  #LetsGetToWork  #CommunityBuilding”

On his Facebook page on Wednesday morning, Turnage posted a congratulatory message to Lewis writing, “I would like to thank everyone who helped and gave support to my campaign it was very much appreciated. I would also like to congratulate Clyde Lewis on his victory in the School Board Race. I am sure he will do a good job for our students!” Turnage, in his humorous style later posted, “In true Mission Impossible fashion, this Facebook page will self destruct in 48 hours….Que(ue) Music!”

No message was posted by Sawyer-White on either of her Facebook pages nor did she call Lewis to concede the election or congratulate him. But Lewis said he did receive a call from Trustee Ellie Householder congratulating him.

Area 1 Race

Hernandez posted a semi-victory message on his campaign Facebook page Wednesday morning, writing, “We did it! The election night results are showing that when all is done I am likely to be the Antioch Unified School District Area 1 Trustee!

I am so thankful for all the support that I received. It’s not often that people like me run for local office. I grew up in low income household and was a first-generation college student. With 70% of our students on free/reduced lunch, I have been in the shoes of our students. I am excited to get to work on addressing the challenges that these students face and creating equity.

This race was not easy, it pushed me harder than I ever could have imagined. Thank you for making this such an exciting race Diane Gibson-Gray, Georgeyoung4change, and Alexis Medina. I know that we’ll continue to see your leadership and service here in Antioch, we’ll need it!

There are countless people to thank for this outcome including many family and friends, but I want to give a shout out to my campaign manager and political mastermind, José Parra.

Let’s get to work!”

Gibson-Gray posted a concession message to Hernandez on her Facebook page Wednesday morning writing, “Congratulations Antonio Hernandez Trustee Elect for AUSD District 1. Thank you everyone who provided friendship and support over the years. Diane”

In a post on his Facebook page Wednesday morning Young wrote, “Congratulations to Clyde Lewis (Area 3) and Antonio Hernandez (Area 1) for winning the school board race. I look forward to working with both of you over the next few years to make the needed changes in the Antioch Unified Schools.”

Next Update Friday at 5:00 PM

The Contra Costa Elections Division is continuing to count the ballots that arrived by yesterday and will continue to arrive for as long as 17 more days including today. They have 28 days to finish the count and certify the election. So, final results may be as much as four weeks away. The next update of results is expected this Friday at 5:00 p.m.

Davis winning Treasurer’s race, Simonsen leads in squeaker for City Clerk, the moot Measure T winning overwhelmingly

By Allen Payton

It appears enough voters in Antioch are satisfied with the work of the current council members as all five incumbers are either currently in the lead in their respective races or placed second in the case of the mayor’s race. as of the 11:44 p.m. Election Night update from the Contra Costa Elections office.

Mayor’s Race

Although there are still thousands of ballots left to be counted, Councilman Lamar Thorpe has a commanding lead over incumbent Mayor Sean Wright and three other challengers in the race for Mayor of Antioch. Thorpe currently has 11,442 votes to Wright’s 9,194 votes.

Julio Jesse Mendez is in a distant third place with 2,392 votes, followed by Gabe Makinano with 2,014 and Rakesh Kumar Christian with 908 votes. But combined those only total 25,950 votes while in 2016, the last presidential election year, there were 33,436 votes cast in the mayor’s race and more voters were expected to turn out in this year’s election. The county Elections Division has 28 days to finish counting all the ballots and certify the results. Plus, based on state law mail-in ballots postmarked by yesterday have up to 17 days to be received to still be counted. However, a 2,248-vote gap will most likely be difficult for Wright to close.

When reached for comment late Tuesday night, Thorpe said, “I want to thank the voters of Antioch for a very decisive victory. They are clear they want us to house homeless people. They are clear they want something done on police reform and they want more investment in youth programs.”
“Antioch is now the second largest city in Contra Costa County and its time for our government to act like it. We need to lead by example,” he continued. “We need to come up with solutions so we can start to be a leader in the region and frankly throughout the county.”

“I look forward to working with all council members and all residents to solve the challenges we face, whether they voted for me or not,” Thorpe added.

He also shared that Wright called him last night and conceded the race.

Council Races

In the races for city council, newcomer Mike Barbanica is beating former Councilman Tony Tiscareno in District 2 by 561 votes. When reached for comment, Tuesday night, Barbanica responded, “I appreciate the support of the residents of District 2 and I will work very hard at getting Antioch Back On Track,” repeating his campaign theme.

In a post on his Facebook page Wednesday morning Tiscareno wrote, “Congratulations to all who prevailed in the Antioch City Council and School Board last night. I had the great opportunity to serve our community for 6 years and I’m proud of the work we did during that time. Now it’s time for the new council to continue to move forward. Antioch voices were heard and now it’s time for us to support our leaders. Best of luck to all.”

He later added, “No sulking here, I want to thank my great friend Charlie Richard for his support and loyalty to my campaign, family and most importantly for our love of our labor movement.”

In District 1, incumbent Councilwoman Joy Motts is barely beating newcomer and challenger Tamisha Walker by just 50 votes. Former Antioch Mayor Pro Tem and Councilman Manny Soliz, Jr. is trailing Walker by 183 votes. Only 4,406 votes have been counted so far in that district. So, the race is too close to call. The winner will only serve a two-year term and will have to run again in 2022 after the district lines are redrawn, next year.

In a post on her campaign Facebook page Wednesday afternoon Walker wrote, “We are currently only 50 votes behind! This election is not over till every vote is counted!  We are in this together Antioch!”

In the District 3 race, incumbent Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock is most likely headed for re-election to her second full term, having been re-elected in 2018 leading all three of her challengers with 2,796 votes. Newcomer Nichole Gardner is second place with 2,206 votes, trailing Ogorchock by 590 votes out of a total of 7,717 votes cast in the race. Parks & Recreation Commission Chair Marie Arce is in third place with 1,507 trailing Gardner by 699 votes and newcomer Antwon Webster is in fourth place with 1,208 votes, trailing Arce by 299 votes.

UPDATE: In a post on his personal Facebook page late Wednesday night Webster conceded writing, “It has been awesome running for City Council. I appreciate and would like to thank all my supporters and those who voted for me. The campaign team put in many hours going door to door with me and I truly appreciate their commitment. There is still work that needs to be done in order to move Antioch forward. I will continue to be a voice for the residents and speak up when a voice is needed. Cleaning up the city can still be done by holding our City Council accountable for the blight that surrounds us. I will remain engaged in economic development issues and support their survival and success. Regardless of the final outcome of the Mayors race, we must not lose faith in the fact that we, the residents of Antioch, have a voice and will be heard. Let’s stay positive and be wise in our decision making.”

Finally, in District 4, running for her third term on the council, incumbent Councilwoman Monica Wilson, with more than a majority of the votes at 55.39%, has a commanding lead over first-time candidate and Police Crime Prevention Commission Chair Sandra White by more than double. Wilson has 3,930 votes to White’s 1,943. The third candidate in the race, Alex John Astorga who spent no money to campaign is trailing White by 721 votes with 1,222. Whoever wins the election will have to run again in two years, following redistricting. Depending on how the new district lines are drawn, since the growth in the city has mainly been south and east, and Wilson lives on the northwest edge of the district, that may end up causing her to have to move to seek re-election should she win.

In a brief post on her Facebook page last night, Wilson wrote, “OMG! Thank You Antioch!”

City Treasurer & Clerk

In the race for City Treasurer, appointed incumbent Jim Davis with 12,916 votes is beating challenger Lauren Posada by 1,075 votes who has 11,841. In the Clerk’s race, incumbent Arne Simonsen has a smaller lead of just 526 votes over Antioch School Board Trustee Ellie Householder. He has 10,165 votes to her 9,639. Police Crime Prevention Commissioner Dwayne Eubanks is in a distant third place with 5,149 votes. With the remaining ballots left to count, the results in both races are still in question.

UPDATE In a post on her Facebook page Wednesday afternoon Householder conceded the election writing, “First of all, I want to thank all of you who exercised your civic duty and voted. I also want to express my immense gratitude towards my supporters; our numbers were superb. This race was unlike anything we’ve ever seen and even though we did not get the results that we hoped for there is still a lot to celebrate. Lastly, I would like to congratulate Arne Simonsen, MMC – Antioch City Clerk on his win and all of the other amazing folx [sic] who were elected in Antioch last night.”

Householder currently has 934 more votes than the 8,705 she garnered in her race for school board in 2018, a non-presidential election with a lower voter turnout than is expected this year.

Measure T

In spite of the fact the initiative is moot and can’t go into effect, with the passage of new state law known as SB-330 Housing Crisis Act of 2019, the voters of Antioch overwhelmingly voted to downzone private property owned by four landowners by over 97% and attempted to stop the 877 homes left to be allocated by passing Measure T, the Let Antioch Voters Decide: The Sand Creek Area Protection Initiative by 20,166 votes in favor or 77.67% to just 5,435 votes against or 21.33%

So, while the voters are telling the council they don’t want more homes in the undeveloped land in the Sand Creek area, the council will have to ignore that message and comply with state law by approve the new homes in the plans for any subdivision project submitted between now and January 2025 that complies with the city’s General Plan. If not, the city will face a minimum fine by the state of $10,000 per housing unit proposed in the development.

Next Results Update Friday at 5:00 PM

The Contra Costa Elections Division is continuing to count the ballots that arrived by yesterday and will continue to arrive for as long as 17 more days including today. They have 28 days to finish the count and certify the election. So, final results may be as much as four weeks away. The next update of results is expected this Friday at 5:00 p.m.